Statement by 52 Experts and UN Rapporteurs: The Campaign to Discredit Javid Rahman Must Be Stopped

Fifty-two experts and rapporteurs from the United Nations issued a joint statement condemning what they termed the "campaign to discredit" Javid Rahman, the former UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran. The signatories of the statement cited the goal of the "Iranian regime and its lobbies" in launching "false and malicious" allegations against Rahman as stemming from a fear of exposing the "concealed human rights situation" in Iran. The statement outlined that "participating in conferences" and "meeting with all segments of civil society" are duties of the UN Special Rapporteur, explaining that the attempts to "discredit" Rahman were due to his refusal to be intimidated by a regime that barred him from traveling to Iran on his mission. According to the website Simay-e Azadi, which published the statement, the international experts emphasized: "We strongly condemn the regime's false and fabricated allegations regarding receiving any kind of fee or remuneration for participating in the conference on August 25, 2024, in Paris." They described Rahman's presence at the conference as focused on the occurrence of "savage crimes" during the "massacre of 1988." Among the signatories were Sang Hyun Song, President of the International Criminal Court from 2009 to 2015; Joachim Rücker, President of the UN Human Rights Council in 2015; Robert Goldman, President of the International Commission of Jurists; Melani Obrian, President of the International Association of Genocide Researchers; Oleksandra Matviichuk, Nobel Peace Prize winner in 2022; Jody Williams, Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1997; and Anna Bryn Noguerres, UN Special Rapporteur on the right to privacy. Following Rahman's participation in a gathering of the Mujahedin-e Khalq in Paris, where he referred to Maryam Rajavi as the "elected president of the National Council of Resistance of Iran," he faced significant criticism on social media. In response, Rahman issued a statement rejecting what he termed "false and incorrect" allegations regarding receiving remuneration for attending the Paris conference, calling it a "misinterpretation." He explained that the title "elected president of the National Council of Resistance of Iran" for Maryam Rajavi was presented to him "exactly within the framework of the Paris conference." The former UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran characterized the campaign to discredit him as an "attempt to evade accountability for crimes" by the Islamic Republic. In a report on July 23, he described the "arbitrary and extrajudicial executions" of thousands of opponents and political prisoners by the Islamic Republic in the 1980s as "genocide" and a "crime against humanity," calling for international investigations in this regard. Following the end of Javid Rahman's six-year term as the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, Mai Sato began her work in this position on August 2. The annual human rights report by Javid Rahman was presented in Toronto, Canada, to the Iranian community, alongside discussions about his record and that of his potential successor, Mai Sato from Japan. Javid Rahman stated: "The 'savage crimes' of the Islamic Republic are the most blatant human rights violations in our 'living memory.'" Mai Sato, the new Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, stated: "I will address all cases 'impartially.'"